


the fruits of one's labor

by starkly



Series: you've been thunderstruck [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fae & Fairies, Fairy Tale Elements, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:21:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28184559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkly/pseuds/starkly
Summary: Thor knows better than to give his name to the man he met in the woods.
Relationships: Tony Stark/Thor
Series: you've been thunderstruck [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2064666
Comments: 3
Kudos: 78





	the fruits of one's labor

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for NaNoWriMo 2020 and [posted here](https://aleator.tumblr.com/post/633650076913418240) on my tumblr writing blog. This fic was proofread before being uploaded here but is otherwise unchanged.
> 
> Prompts taken from the AU-gust 2020 challenge list on Twitter. Day One: Fantasy AU.

Thor knows better than to give his name to the man he met in the woods.

Normally Thor is an affable sort, prone to helping strangers and chatting with anyone who’s just passing through. But he can tell straight away that the man in the woods isn’t a normal stranger or passerby, so when the man asks after his name, Thor says he can just call him a friend.

He sees him when he travels through the great wood between his village and the larger city where he gets supplies for the people in his town. He goes about once a week, taking a wagon and a list of goods to look out for. These days the man in the woods waits for him near the road, and when he sees him he calls out a, “Ho, friend, and well met.”

Thor lets him travel with him on the wagon the rest of the way, though the man sometimes tries to get Thor to stay in the woods. It’s tempting at times--the man is beautiful, his hair so dark Thor would call it ebony, and his amber eyes seem to glow almost unnaturally when the light catches them at the right angle. When the man tells Thor to call him Anthony, Thor is certain that’s not his real name.

Anthony is a chatty one, something that takes Thor by surprise the first time he lets Anthony travel with him through the woods. He suspects that Anthony only rides with him just to talk to him, because he always leaves before Thor gets to the edge of the forest, even though he always asks Thor for his name every time. Thor may enjoy his company and his chatter on the lonely trip through the woods, but he wasn’t raised by a fool, and his mama taught him better than to give too much to someone who is clearly fae.

“I have something for you,” Anthony says one morning, after he’s settled beside Thor at the front of the wagon, and he holds out his hand to reveal a dark purple plum.

Thor’s mama had also taught him to be wary of fae gifts and especially fae food, but at the same time not to be rude to fae either. Overall, it seemed there were a lot of things to be careful with when it came to fae, and it would be easier not to deal with one at all, but he’s in a bit too deep to be worrying about that now.

“It’s lovely,” Thor says politely, because it’s really the most delicious plum he’s ever seen, “but it isn’t plum season.”

“I have a special garden,” Anthony says. “I can get you any fruit you want.”

“I’m sorry, but I’ve already eaten breakfast today,” says Thor, side-stepping again, and so Anthony tucks the plum away, looking a little glum.

It goes like this for the next several weeks. Anthony reveals a different fruit every time, each one more delicious-looking than the last. Every time Thor politely declines, even when he dearly wishes to try one of the fruits he’s never seen before. Anthony never gets mad, and he doesn’t seem deterred either, trying again the next week and the next.

“Why don’t you leave the forest?” Thor asks Anthony one day as the fae man gets down from the wagon before he exits the forest on the way into the city.

“I can’t,” Anthony says simply. “I have to tend to my garden.”

That doesn’t seem like much of an answer, but Thor nods and bids Anthony farewell before continuing down the road to town.

“You look tired,” Thor tells Anthony the next time he accompanies him through the woods. Indeed, Anthony’s beautiful dark hair is limp and ashy, his normally animated eyes too dull. “Are you ill?”

Anthony shakes his head, looking down at the single raspberry in his hand that Thor’s rejected once again. “It’s nothing. Do not worry about me.”

But to Thor’s surprise, he finds that he is worrying about Anthony. Even once he’s returned home from his trip, the supplies from his wagon passed out among the villagers, he thinks of Anthony and his pale complexion and hopes that he’s all right.

The next week Thor doesn’t see Anthony in the forest at all, not on his way to the city or the way back. The weather has turned cold, with snow and frost on the ground, and though Anthony is fae Thor still worries about him. Fae don’t get sick, do they?

He spends several days fretting, until on day three he packs his bag, bundles up in his warmest furs, and treks into the forest.

He’s not sure what he’s looking for. Anthony likely doesn’t live in a simple cottage or anything of normal, mundane nature. But he still walks deeper into the forest, starting at the point where Anthony normally joins him on his wagon, and looks for signs of fae habitation.

He finds it in the form of a fairy ring, no snow or dead leaves within the circle of mushrooms on the ground. Thor takes a deep breath, hitches his bag higher over his shoulder, and steps into the ring.

The forest on the other side of the ring is lush and green, no signs of winter at all. The air sparkles in the bright sunlight and glowing spores decorate the trees. Thor walks deeper in, taking the path of least resistance, until he comes across a clearing between the trees.

There he finds Anthony, laying amongst the dying flowers and fruits in his garden. Thor drops his rucksack and rushes over to him, kneeling in the dirt by his side.

“Anthony?” Thor whispers, gently touching his cheek, his heart pounding anxiously. For a moment he thinks Anthony is dead, but then the smaller man shifts under his hand and Thor lets out a relieved breath. “Anthony, what’s wrong? You look at death’s door.”

Opening his eyes at the sound of Thor’s voice, Anthony smiles at him and lifts his hand, uncurling his fingers to reveal a single berry.

“What is this? Why do you keep offering me these things?” Thor asks, a tremble in his voice.

“I wish to keep you with me,” Anthony replies, barely above a whisper. “Humans cannot claim another with a name, but they can share in a fae’s power.”

“Is that what you’ve been doing?” How long has Anthony been stripping away his power, trying to give pieces of his heart to an oblivious human who was too fearful of old stories to realize? “You absolute fool, why didn’t you say anything?”

“You won’t give me your name,” Anthony says, and Thor swears it sounds almost churlish. “You won’t take my gifts. You don’t want me. I’m not stupid.”

Thor cups his hand over Anthony’s, covering the berry protectively. “It’s Thor,” he says without any fear. “My name’s Thor Odinson. Keep your power, Anthony.”

He brings their cupped hands up to Anthony’s mouth, tipping the berry out of his hand and feeding it to him. Anthony doesn’t resist, chewing the berry slowly, and once he swallows it Thor leans down and places his mouth upon Anthony’s, kissing him gently.

Anthony tastes sweet like berries, the color coming back to his face before they even finish the kiss. His hair regains its dark luster and his eyes sparkle golden once more.

“What are you going to do with me now you have me?” Thor murmurs, studying Anthony’s healthy face.

Anthony reaches up, delicate fingers brushing over Thor’s cheek, and he draws him back down into another kiss that Thor is all too happy to give him, lost in a world where time has no meaning.


End file.
